WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama's $825 billion package to stem the U.S. recession headed toward anticipated passage on Wednesday in a sharply divided House of Representatives.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve will resume a key meeting on Wednesday to review options of how to restore U.S. growth, with its traditional interest rate policy tool already lowered almost to zero.

AP - After struggling under a searing sun, Serena Williams found her rhythm when the Rod Laver Arena roof was closed Wednesday and advanced to the Australian Open semifinals.

Reuters - U.S. President Barack Obama's $825 billion package to stem the U.S. recession headed toward anticipated passage on Wednesday in a sharply divided House of Representatives.

Reuters - The Federal Reserve will resume a key meeting on Wednesday to review options of how to restore U.S. growth, with its traditional interest rate policy tool already lowered almost to zero.

GAZA (Reuters) - Israeli aircraft bombed smuggling tunnels under the Egypt-Gaza border on Wednesday in a response to the killing of an Israeli soldier, violence that strained a fragile ceasefire before the arrival of a U.S. peace envoy.

AP - President Barack Obama's expansive and expensive plan to jump-start the economy is all but certain to clear its first hurdle when the Democratic-controlled House votes on a $825 billion version that melds new spending and tax cuts.

AP - Israeli warplanes pounded smuggling tunnels under the Gaza-Egypt border early Wednesday, a day after a Palestinian bomb killed an Israeli soldier and the Israeli military vowed to respond harshly to any further attacks.

AP - Utility companies and road crews prepared for the worst Wednesday as a winter storm barreled into the Northeast, while officials in areas already hit hard by the blast warned it may be days before some shivering communities have electricity again.

Reuters - Israeli aircraft bombed smuggling tunnels under the Egypt-Gaza border on Wednesday in a response to the killing of an Israeli soldier, violence that strained a fragile ceasefire before the arrival of a U.S. peace envoy.

AFP - New US peace envoy George Mitchell said on Wednesday it was critically important to consolidate the Gaza ceasefire, as Israel warned it would defend itself after a soldier was killed by Palestinian militants.

TEHRAN (Reuters) - The new U.S. administration needs to show a 'fundamental' change in policy not just tactics, Iran's president said on Wednesday after U.S. President Barack Obama offered to extend a hand of peace to the Islamic Republic.

DAVOS, Switzerland (Reuters) - Confidence among heads of the world's top companies meeting in Davos has tumbled to a new low, with the prospect of a long recession torpedoing faith in corporate prospects.

GAZA (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama's Middle East envoy called in Egypt on Wednesday for a Gaza ceasefire to be consolidated and pledged the new administration would vigorously pursue peace and stability in the region.

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia has halted a plan to retaliate against a proposed U.S. missile defense shield by stationing its own missiles near Europe's borders, a Russian news agency quoted the military as saying on Wednesday.

AP - Barack Obama often has said he will issue orders to swiftly close down the Iraq war. Now military leaders are getting a chance to tell the new commander in chief how they could comply, and why he might want to wait.

AP - President Barack Obama's new Mideast envoy sought Wednesday to boost a 10-day-old Gaza cease-fire that was thrown into turmoil, as Israeli warplanes pounded Gaza smuggling tunnels in retaliation for a Palestinian bombing that killed a soldier.

AP - The Illinois senators weighing Gov. Rod Blagojevich's political fate have listened to the governor's voice captured on a secret government wiretap and heard an FBI agent say the recordings caught one corrupt scheme after another.

AP - Serena Williams was having what she called an 'out-of-body experience' Wednesday in brutal heat at the Australian Open.

Reuters - The new U.S. administration needs to show a 'fundamental' change in policy not just tactics, Iran's president said on Wednesday after U.S. President Barack Obama offered to extend a hand of peace to the Islamic Republic.

Reuters - Confidence among heads of the world's top companies meeting in Davos has tumbled to a new low, with the prospect of a long recession torpedoing faith in corporate prospects.

Reuters - U.S. President Barack Obama's Middle East envoy called in Egypt on Wednesday for a Gaza ceasefire to be consolidated and pledged the new administration would vigorously pursue peace and stability in the region.

Reuters - Russia has halted a plan to retaliate against a proposed U.S. missile defense shield by stationing its own missiles near Europe's borders, a Russian news agency quoted the military as saying on Wednesday.

AFP - Russia has shelved plans to install missiles on central Europe's doorstep after detecting a cooling by the Obama administration towards a controversial US shield project, a military official said on Wednesday.

DAVOS, Switzerland (Reuters) - Confidence among the world's top company chiefs meeting in Davos has tumbled to a new low and a brewing currency row between the United States and China cast doubt on the political will to act in concert. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin will both address business and political leaders in the Alpine ski resort later on Wednesday, to offer their remedies for the worst economic crisis in 80 years.

GENEVA (Reuters) - Up to 51 million jobs worldwide could disappear by the end of this year as a result of the economic slowdown that has turned into a global employment crisis, a United Nations agency said on Wednesday.

TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran said on Wednesday it would welcome President Barack Obama's offer of a change in U.S. policy provided it involved a withdrawal of U.S. troops from abroad and an apology for past 'crimes' against Tehran.

AP - A top-ranking Republican says GOP lawmakers are worried about the level of domestic spending in the $825 billion economic stimulus bill now before the House.

AP - In one upstairs bedroom, the bodies of twin 2-year-old boys were found beside their dead mother. In another bedroom, 5-year-old twin girls and their 8-year-old sister lay next to their lifeless father.

AP - Congress appears poised to grant a four-month delay in the upcoming shutdown of analog TV broadcasts, though broadcasters still will be allowed to go all-digital earlier if they want.

Reuters - Confidence among the world's top company chiefs meeting in Davos has tumbled to a new low and a brewing currency row between the United States and China cast doubt on the political will to act in concert. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin will both address business and political leaders in the Alpine ski resort later on Wednesday, to offer their remedies for the worst economic crisis in 80 years.

Reuters - Up to 51 million jobs worldwide could disappear by the end of this year as a result of the economic slowdown that has turned into a global employment crisis, a United Nations agency said on Wednesday.

Reuters - Iran said on Wednesday it would welcome President Barack Obama's offer of a change in U.S. policy provided it involved a withdrawal of U.S. troops from abroad and an apology for past 'crimes' against Tehran.

AFP - New US peace envoy George Mitchell said on Wednesday it was critically important to consolidate the Gaza ceasefire, as Israel warned it would defend itself after a soldier was killed by Palestinian militants.

AFP - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad demanded on Wednesday that US President Barack Obama apologise for 'crimes' committed by the United States against Iran over the past 60 years.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Wells Fargo & Co reported a surprise quarterly loss, its first since 2001, as it added to reserves for credit losses, but it maintained its dividend and said it did not need more taxpayer funds to absorb the troubled lender Wachovia Corp.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve resumed a policy meeting on Wednesday that some investors hoped might end with a signal it was moving closer to buying long-term government bonds now that its traditional interest rate cutting tools have been exhausted.

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - President Barack Obama's Middle East envoy called on Wednesday for a Gaza ceasefire to be consolidated, holding talks in Israel and Egypt and promising a vigorous pursuit of peace under the new U.S. administration.

AP - With home foreclosures spiking, the Federal Reserve is taking steps to try to keep some distressed borrowers in their homes.

AP - Stocks are sharply higher following media reports that the Obama administration is considering a plan to set up banks that could absorb bad assets from financial companies.

Reuters - Wells Fargo & Co reported a surprise quarterly loss, its first since 2001, as it added to reserves for credit losses, but it maintained its dividend and said it did not need more taxpayer funds to absorb the troubled lender Wachovia Corp.

Reuters - The Federal Reserve resumed a policy meeting on Wednesday that some investors hoped might end with a signal it was moving closer to buying long-term government bonds now that its traditional interest rate cutting tools have been exhausted.

Reuters - President Barack Obama's Middle East envoy called on Wednesday for a Gaza ceasefire to be consolidated, holding talks in Israel and Egypt and promising a vigorous pursuit of peace under the new U.S. administration.

DAVOS, Switzerland (Reuters) - Confidence among the world's top bosses meeting in Davos has evaporated and European Central Bank chief Jean-Claude Trichet said on Wednesday a too fragile financial system needed reform.

CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt aired its grievances against Iran, the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas and the Lebanese Shi'ite group Hezbollah, saying they worked together in the fighting over Gaza to provoke conflict in the Middle East.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A Senate committee voted to approve Eric Holder to be the first black attorney general, sending his nomination on Wednesday to the full Senate, which is expected to confirm him.

AP - President Barack Obama says businesses and workers are counting on Washington for 'bold and swift' action to steady the struggling economy.

AP - A destructive winter storm that has left more than 800,000 customers in the dark barreled into the Northeast on Wednesday, delaying flights and turning the morning rush into the morning slush as communities braced for the worst.

AP - The impeachment trial of Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich has begun its third day with Blagojevich once again a no-show.

AP - Eric Holder's nomination as the first African-American attorney general moved to the full Senate on Wednesday with broad bipartisan support, as Republicans who earlier criticized the nominee determined he was well qualified for the job.

Reuters - Confidence among the world's top bosses meeting in Davos has evaporated and European Central Bank chief Jean-Claude Trichet said on Wednesday a too fragile financial system needed reform.

Reuters - Egypt aired its grievances against Iran, the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas and the Lebanese Shi'ite group Hezbollah, saying they worked together in the fighting over Gaza to provoke conflict in the Middle East.

AFP - The embattled world economy is crawling to a halt under the financial crisis and would grow by only 0.5 percent this year, the slowest pace since World War II, the International Monetary Fund said Wednesday.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama pitched his $825 billion economic stimulus plan to business leaders on Wednesday, as the House of Representatives debated the legislation it was expected to pass later in the day.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Snow and ice storms across the Midwest knocked out power to more than 600,000 homes and businesses from Oklahoma to West Virginia by early Wednesday, local utilities reported.

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel warned on Wednesday of further violent retaliation for the killing of a soldier by Gaza militants, an Israeli security source said.

AP - Bucking the Obama administration, House Republicans on Wednesday defeated a bill to postpone the upcoming transition from analog to digital television broadcasting to June 12 — leaving the current Feb. 17 deadline intact for now.

AP - General Motors Corp. said Wednesday that its 'jobs bank' program will end Monday, following a similar move at Chrysler LLC that helps satisfy the conditions the government imposed when it lent the automakers $17.4 billion late last year.

Reuters - President Barack Obama pitched his $825 billion economic stimulus plan to business leaders on Wednesday, as the House of Representatives debated the legislation it was expected to pass later in the day.

Reuters - Snow and ice storms across the Midwest knocked out power to more than 600,000 homes and businesses from Oklahoma to West Virginia by early Wednesday, local utilities reported.

Reuters - Israel warned on Wednesday of further violent retaliation for the killing of a soldier by Gaza militants, an Israeli security source said.

AFP - The International Monetary Fund slashed its economic growth forecasts Wednesday, predicting the severe financial crisis would brake global growth to the slowest pace in six decades.

AFP - US peace envoy George Mitchell said on Wednesday it was vital to consolidate the ceasefire that ended the Gaza war, as tensions rose in the enclave after a deadly bombing by Palestinian militants.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve on Wednesday said it is prepared to buy long-term government debt if that would help improve credit conditions and signaled some concern that deflation risks were rising.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said on Wednesday the Obama administration was working on a plan to repair the battered financial system and boost recovery that should be ready fairly soon.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama will press Afghan President Hamid Karzai to extend government control beyond the capital and fight corruption under a new U.S. policy with a 'significant non-military component,' a White House official said on Wednesday.

AP - Massive deficits could force the post office to cut out one day of mail delivery, the postmaster general told Congress on Wednesday, in asking lawmakers to lift the requirement that the agency deliver mail six days a week. If the change happens, that doesn't necessarily mean an end to Saturday mail delivery. Previous post office studies have looked at the possibility of skipping some other day when mail flow is light, such as Tuesday.

AP - President Barack Obama's review of how to wind down the war in Iraq will conclude soon, the White House said Wednesday ahead of his first Pentagon session with military advisers. The new commander in chief scheduled an afternoon briefing at the Defense Department's headquarters with the four military service leaders, one more step toward fulfilling his promise of withdrawing all combat troops from Iraq.

AP - President Barack Obama's new Mideast envoy promised a vigorous push for Israel-Palestinian peace, saying Wednesday that Gaza militants must end weapons smuggling and the territory's blockaded borders must be opened if the cease-fire is to last.

AP - Roaches, mold, and signs of a leaking roof were among numerous problems federal inspectors uncovered at a Georgia peanut plant implicated in the national salmonella outbreak, the government said Wednesday.

AP - Kelly Rowland says she will always be a part of Beyonce's family, but she no longer will be managed by the superstar's father. Rowland and Matthew Knowles announced Wednesday that he is bowing out as her manager. He's guided her career since she was kid, when he put her in Destiny's Child along with Beyonce. He even helped raise her.

AP - A San Diego judge has declared a mistrial in a kidnapping and assault case after the defendant smeared excrement on his lawyer's face and threw it at jurors. The judge boosted defendant Weusi McGowan's bail from $250,000 to $1 million after the Monday incident.

AP - Aaron Heilman's stay with the Seattle Mariners didn't last long. The reliever, obtained from the New York Mets last month, was traded to the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday for infielder Ronny Cedeno and left-hander Garrett Olson. Cubs general manager Jim Hendry completed the deal while he while traveling in Rome.

Reuters - The Federal Reserve on Wednesday said it is prepared to buy long-term government debt if that would help improve credit conditions and signaled some concern that deflation risks were rising.

Reuters - Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said on Wednesday the Obama administration was working on a plan to repair the battered financial system and boost recovery that should be ready fairly soon.

Reuters - President Barack Obama will press Afghan President Hamid Karzai to extend government control beyond the capital and fight corruption in a new U.S. policy that will have a 'significant non-military component,' a White House official said on Wednesday.

AFP - The International Monetary Fund slashed its economic outlook Wednesday, predicting the global financial crisis would slam growth to a virtual standstill this year.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama touted his $825 billion economic stimulus plan to U.S. business leaders, as the House of Representatives edged toward passage of the legislation on Wednesday despite Republican opposition.

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich told lawmakers on Wednesday he wants to deliver a closing argument at his impeachment trial where he faces likely removal from office amid charges he tried to sell the U.S. Senate seat once held by President Barack Obama.

AP - Moving with remarkable speed, the Democratic-controlled House lined up eagerly Wednesday to approve $819 billion in spending increases and tax cuts at the heart of President Barack Obama's economic recovery program. Republicans fought the bill as wasteful. 'We don't have a moment to spare,' Obama declared at the White House as Democrats hastened to do his bidding.

AP - Gov. Rod Blagojevich wants to make a statement, but not answer any questions, at the impeachment trial he has thus far avoided, the Illinois Senate president announced Wednesday.

AP - Before he was released from Guantanamo, a Saudi detainee insisted he had only wanted to help refugees and was not a fighter. Now, as an al-Qaida field commander sporting a bandolier of bullets, he is threatening the United States and has been hailed by a militant Web site as a veteran guerrilla and 'a fomenter of war.'

AP - When neighbors went inside Marvin Schur's house, the windows were frosted over, icicles hung from a faucet, and the 93-year-old World War II veteran lay dead on the bedroom floor in a winter jacket over four layers of clothing.

AP - Los Angeles police say a man who apparently shot himself after killing his wife and their five children was awash in debt and planning to leave California. Detective David Cortez said Wednesday that Ervin Lupoe was at least one month behind on his mortgage. He says the 40-year-old Lupoe owed at least $15,000 to the Internal Revenue Service and thousands more on a line of credit.

AP - Donating a kidney doesn't appear to have any long-term health consequences for the donor, a reassuring study shows. Researchers at the University of Minnesota found those who gave up one of their two kidneys lived a normal life span and were as healthy as people in the general population. The donation also didn't raise the risk of having kidney failure later.

Reuters - President Barack Obama touted his $825 billion economic stimulus plan to U.S. business leaders, as the House of Representatives edged toward passage of the legislation on Wednesday despite Republican opposition.

Reuters - Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich told lawmakers on Wednesday he wants to deliver a closing argument at his impeachment trial where he faces likely removal from office amid charges he tried to sell the U.S. Senate seat once held by President Barack Obama.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama scored his first major legislative victory on Wednesday with passage of an $825 billion economic stimulus package by a sharply divided U.S. House of Representatives on a 244-188 vote.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve on Wednesday inched closer to buying U.S. government bonds in a new front in its fight against the credit crisis and signaled unease over the risk of deflation with the economy weakening.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States must make tough decisions immediately about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, President Barack Obama said on Wednesday after being briefed by his military chiefs.

CHICAGO (Reuters) - A company at the center of a salmonella outbreak that has sickened more than 500 people was broadening its recall of peanut products, U.S. health officials said on Wednesday.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States is looking into allegations the CIA station chief in Algeria raped at least two Muslim women after lacing their drinks with a drug, a State Department spokesman said on Wednesday.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Snow and ice storms across the U.S. Midwest knocked out power to more than 870,000 homes and businesses from Oklahoma to West Virginia on Wednesday, local utilities reported.

AP - In a swift victory for President Barack Obama, the Democratic-controlled House approved a historically huge $819 billion stimulus bill Wednesday night with spending increases and tax cuts at the heart of the young administration's plan to revive a badly ailing economy. The vote was 244-188, with Republicans unanimous in opposition despite Obama's frequent pleas for bipartisan support.

AP - Well over a million people shivered in ice-bound homes across the country Wednesday, waiting for warmer weather and for utility crews to restring power lines brought down by a storm that killed 23 as it took a snowy, icy journey from the Southern Plains to the East Coast.

AP - The salmonella outbreak spawned one of the largest ever product recalls Wednesday by a Georgia peanut plant where federal inspectors reported finding roaches, mold, a leaking roof and other sanitary problems. Managers at the Blakely, Ga. plant owned by Peanut Corp. of America continued shipping peanut products even after they were found to contain salmonella.

Reuters - President Barack Obama scored his first major legislative victory on Wednesday with passage of an $825 billion economic stimulus package by a sharply divided U.S. House of Representatives on a 244-188 vote.

Reuters - The Federal Reserve on Wednesday inched closer to buying U.S. government bonds in a new front in its fight against the credit crisis and signaled unease over the risk of deflation with the economy weakening.

Reuters - The United States must make tough decisions immediately about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, President Barack Obama said on Wednesday after being briefed by his military chiefs.

Reuters - A company at the center of a salmonella outbreak that has sickened more than 500 people was broadening its recall of peanut products, U.S. health officials said on Wednesday.

Reuters - The United States is looking into allegations the CIA station chief in Algeria raped at least two Muslim women after lacing their drinks with a drug, a State Department spokesman said on Wednesday.

Reuters - Snow and ice storms across the U.S. Midwest knocked out power to more than 870,000 homes and businesses from Oklahoma to West Virginia on Wednesday, local utilities reported.

AFP - The divided US House of Representatives on Wednesday approved an 819-billion-dollar stimulus package touted by President Barack Obama as a vital remedy to revive the ailing US economy.

OVERLAND PARK, Kansas (Reuters) - It has been nearly a year since Todd Wilson last collected a paycheck. The Kansas computer salesman wasn't too worried at first, for he had a solid work history, decent savings, and a wife with a job.

AP - In a swift victory for President Barack Obama, the Democratic-controlled House approved a historically huge $819 billion stimulus bill Wednesday night with spending increases and tax cuts at the heart of the young administration's plan to revive a badly ailing economy. The vote was 244-188, with Republicans unanimous in opposition despite Obama's frequent pleas for bipartisan support.

AP - A California woman captured last year after escaping from a Michigan prison in 1976 and living on the lam as a suburban mother will be released from the original sentence that put her behind bars, a state parole board ruled Wednesday.

AP - The paper trail in the Bernard Madoff fraud case has led investigators to a warehouse containing boxes and file cabinets stuffed with documents that could reveal more clues about what may be the largest Ponzi scheme ever, a government official said Wednesday.

AP - Everett police said a 24-year-old man picked the wrong place to try to deal drugs — a stall in the police station restroom. Police Sgt. Robert Goetz said the man was overheard Wednesday using a cellular telephone to try to sell Oxycodone, a prescription painkiller, and other drugs.

AFP - President Barack Obama said he had 'difficult decisions' to make on Iraq and Afghanistan after his first meeting as commander-in-chief at the Pentagon with military brass.

CHICAGO (Reuters) - A company at the center of a salmonella outbreak that has sickened more than 500 people was broadening its recall of peanut products, U.S. health officials said on Wednesday.

AP - Second-seeded Serena Williams has advanced to the Australian Open final, beating Elena Dementieva of Russia in straight sets.

Reuters - A company at the center of a salmonella outbreak that has sickened more than 500 people was broadening its recall of peanut products, U.S. health officials said on Wednesday.

AFP - Handing US President Barack Obama his first big win, the divided US House of Representatives approved a huge stimulus bill he touted as vital to saving the US economy from collapse.

AFP - France headed into a 'Black Thursday' of mass strikes called by all of the country's major unions to protest President Nicolas Sarkozy's handling of the economic crisis.